Mike Tish | 

15 of the Best and Worst Things to Buy at Dick's Sporting Goods

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At Dick’s Sporting Goods, you have to know the best and worst things to buy before you get sucked in, which can be confusing, considering Dick’s has a sale like every five minutes. Take backpacks: 25% off sounds great until you realize this doesn’t come close to prices at Sierra Trading Post. But, Top Flight golf clubs: Don’t buy them anywhere but Dick’s.

If figuring all of that out sounds like a headache, don’t worry. Here at KCL we publish hundreds of deals not only from Dick’s but from all of their competitors dating back years—so we know when it’s the right time to buy.

Read on and I’ll tell you the complete breakdown of what to buy (and what never to buy) from Dick’s.

These sales are hard to keep track of, so let us do it for you. Download the Krazy Coupon Lady app, and we’ll alert you whenever discounts on these items are about to drop.

 

1. Buy Nike shoes and apparel at Dick’s—not Nordstrom or Macy’s.

nike shorts at dicks sporting goods

If Dick’s ever goes more than one week without a flash sale, it’s only by a day or two. If you check those sales, it’s almost a certainty that you’ll find Nike apparel and shoes at a discounted price.

Like these shorts:

Buy 1 Women’s Nike Tempo Luxe 5″ Running Shorts (reg. $40) $12.97-$19.97, sale price
Free shipping on orders of $49+ or free curbside pickup
Final Price: as low as $12.97
Compare to Nordstrom and Nike and save $30.

Or these shoes for more than 50% off:

Buy 1 Men’s Nike Air Zoom Pegasus Running Shoes (reg. $129.99) $61.97-$84.98, sale price through Oct. 28 at 10 p.m. PT
Free shipping on orders of $49+ or free curbside pickup
Final Price: as low as $61.97
Compare to Macy’s for $120

See all Nike coupons.

 

2. Skip Macy’s and buy adidas apparel from Dick’s to save 50%.

adidas shirt at dicks sporting goods

Even though Dick’s includes adidas in the flash sales about as often as it features Nike products, the discounts don’t match up once you move beyond apparel.

That said, we’ve found some great deals on running shorts (if they’re not directly discounted, expect a BOGO 50% off deal) and other adidas apparel.

Buy 1 adidas Glow Pink Women’s Run It Running Shorts (reg. $30.00) $9.97, sale price through 2/6
Free shipping on orders $49+ or free store pickup
Final Price: $9.97

Buy 1 adidas Men’s Tiro Track Jacket (reg. $50.00) $22.00, sale price through 2/6
Free shipping on orders $49+ or free store pickup
Final Price: $22.00
Compare to Macy’s for $50

See all adidas coupons.

 

3. Buy Walter Hagen golf clothes from Dick’s BOGO free once per month.

walter hagen shirt at dicks sporting goods

Deals on golf apparel are staples of the Dick’s weekly flash sale. For years, Dick’s has done either a BOGO free or BOGO half-off deal for Walter Hagen, Lady Hagen, and women’s Slazenger items.

Amazon and Walmart carry a few Walter Hagen options, and you can always find something cheaper at Dick’s.

Buy 1 Walter Hagen Perfect 11 Turtle Print Golf Polo (reg. $70) $49, sale price
Get 1 polo of equal or lesser value (determined from sale price $49)
Free shipping on orders of $49+ or free pickup
Final Price: $49
Compare to Amazon at $65.10

 

4. Don’t buy full golf club sets from Dick’s—unless they’re Top-Flite.

dicks sporting goods cart in front of top flite golf club sets

Top-Flite golf club sets are put on sale every year around March and April for 30% off. They’re average clubs, but Dick’s prices them cheaper than similar sets you’d find on Amazon.

Buy 1 Women’s Top-Flite 2020 XL 12-Piece Complete Set (reg. $299.99) $210.29, sale price
Free shipping on order of $49+ or free pickup
Final Price: $210.29
Compare to Wilson Women’s SGI Complete Set from Amazon $349.99

If you’re looking for golf clubs that are a little more high-end, like Callaway or Taylormade sets, I recommend looking at Amazon, which offers complete Callaway Strata sets for $200 cheaper than Dick’s and Golf Galaxy.

Buy 1 Callaway Men’s Strata Complete Set $349.99
Free shipping for Amazon Prime members
Final Price: $349.99
Compare to Callaway Men’s Strata Complete Set from Dick’s $549.99

 

5. Save over $1,000 on a three-day camping trip when you rent gear from Dick’s.

Camping at the beach in Bahia Honda state park. Florida Keys, United States

Renting gear from Dick’s is way cheaper than buying it at full price. Take this camping set for 2, which you can rent for $59.50 per day. It includes:

  • 1 3-person Ashcroft tent
  • 2 adult Marmot Trestles sleeping bags
  • 2 Sea to Summit self-inflating sleeping mats
  • 2 Petzl headlamps
  • 1 Black Diamond lantern
  • 1 YETI Hopper Backflip 24 cooler
  • 2 TravelChair Roo Chairs

The price to buy all of those items is $1,187.83. Renting them for three days only costs $178.50.

See all outdoors coupons.

 

 

6. But rent camping gear from REI if your trip is four days or more.

Bare footed children laying on blue sleeping bags in pop-up camper bunk end bed looking out window at surrounding forest trees and campground.

REI charges non-members a $100 deposit for any rental they take out. Don’t do that. Instead pay a one-time $20 fee for a lifetime REI membership that’ll earn you discounted prices on all REI rentals.

Unlike Dick’s, which charges a flat rate for each day of rentals, REI charges significantly less starting on the second day of a trip. Starting on the fourth day of a trip—even if you had to pay for a membership—REI’s camping kit costs less and includes more than their counterpart.

The camping kit REI offers includes everything the Dick’s kit does, plus:

  • One camp table
  • One 2-burner camp stove (fuel sold separately)
  • One set of pots and pans.

Rent 1 REI Car Camping Kit for four days ($491 for non-members) $195, member price
Pay $20 for REI membership.
Final Price: $215
Compare to $238 from Dick’s

See all REI coupons.

 

7. Go to Kohl’s for Columbia on clearance; Dick’s is better for non-clearance.

columbia windbreakers at kohls

We’ve seen Columbia outerwear go on clearance at Kohl’s on a near-monthly basis, and the savings available are *chef’s kiss*. At Kohl’s, expect 70% savings that we’ve seen reach as high as 85% off the regular price.

Buy 1 Women’s Columbia Copper Crest Hooded Quilt Jacket (reg. $130) $19.50, clearance price
Free shipping on orders of $75+ or free store pickup
Final Price: $19.50
Compare to Dick’s for as low as $89.99

Here’s the kicker: when it comes to non-clearance sales, Dick’s actually is the better option—we’ve seen discounts as high as 66% off regular price.

Buy 1 Women’s Columbia Arcadia II Rain Jacket (reg. $90-$100) $29.98-$69.99, sale price
Free shipping on orders of $49+ or free curbside pickup
Final Price: as low as $29.98
Compare to Kohl’s for $90

See all Columbia coupons.

 

8. But def pick up The North Face outerwear for 40 – 50% off at Dick’s in January.

A The North face sweater next to a Dicks sporting Goods shopping cart

Outerwear from The North Face goes on sale every few months at Dick’s, but we’ve found the best savings in January. During this month Dick’s regularly includes The North Face in its weekly flash sales, which is where we found this deal:

Flash Sale: Buy 1 The North Face Women’s Mattea Jacket (reg. $99.00) $49.97, sale price through 1/30
Free shipping
Final Price: $49.97
Compare to The North Face for $109.99

See all The North Face coupons.

 

9. Skip The North Face backpacks at Dick’s; they’re half as much at Sierra Trading Post.

north face backpacks at dicks sporting goods

The best Dick’s offers on backpacks from brands such as The North Face come during its Back to School sale in July and August, when Dick’s slaps a 25% discount on most items.

The catch? Regular prices at Dick’s are more than double what we’ve found on similar backpacks from the same brands elsewhere, like this one from Sierra Trading Post:

Buy 1 The North Face Vault 27 L Backpack, $24.99
Use unique code with email sign-up for free shipping
Or use SHIP89 for free shipping on orders of $89+
Final Price: $24.99
Compare to Dick’s for $59

See all backpack coupons.

 

10. Buy Pelican kayaks for 37% cheaper than Academy and Blain’s Farm & Fleet.

Blue and green Kayaks in rows, for sale at Dicks Sporting Goods.

Dick’s runs its boating sale every year during the last few weeks of May, and during this sale we’ve found Pelican kayaks marked more than 55% off their regular price. That’s $120 off Dick’s full-price and $90 cheaper than Academy Sports + Outdoors!

Pelican 10′ Trailblazer 100 NXT Kayak (reg. $279.99) $159.98, sale price
Free shipping on orders of $49+ or free curbside pickup
Final Price: $159.98
Compare to Academy Sports + Outdoors and save $90

 

 

11. Buy youth soccer sets, baseball bats, and softball bats…

Girls soccer gear in a dicks sporting goods shopping basket

If you’re buying youth soccer gear, it won’t get more affordable than the DSG youth soccer package. It includes:

  • 1 DSG Kids’ Ocala 2.0 FG Soccer Cleats (reg. $24.99)
  • 1 DSG Ocala 20 Logo Soccer Ball (reg. $12.99)
  • 1 DSG Youth Soccer Shin Guard Socks (reg. $9.99)

Buy 1 DSG Youth Soccer Set $34.99
Free curbside pickup
Final Price: $34.99
Compare to cleats, one ball, and shin guards from Walmart for $50.43

Although Dick’s doesn’t offer bundles on its softball gear, they do boast a selection on par with retailers such as softball.com and lower prices to boot.

Buy 1 Rawlings Storm Fastpitch Bat 2020 $79.99
Sign up for Dick’s email for 10% off
Free shipping on items $49+ or free curbside pickup
Final Price: $70
Compare to Softball.com for as low as $91.95

For baseball bats, we needed to take advantage of sales and coupons—but ended up saving $150 by buying the previous year’s model.

Buy 1 Rawlings VELO ACP BBCOR Bat 2020 (reg. $349.99) $199.99, sale price
Sign up for Dick’s email for 10% off
Free shipping on items $49+ or free curbside pickup
Final Price: $180
Compare to Amazon for $332.83

 

12. …But skip hockey, football, and baseball gear.

Footballs on a for sale shelf with one in a Dicks sporting goods shopping cart in the forground

This gear rarely gets the discount love we’ve seen applied to outerwear, footwear, and golf apparel.

Plus Dick’s doesn’t compete well here when it comes to selection or pricing compared to online retailers selling sport-specific equipment. Even if you take advantage of promos and coupons, it’s easier to find better deals elsewhere:

Buy 1 CCM Youth Tacks 9060 Ice Hockey Skates $99.99
Sign up for Dick’s email for 10% off
Free shipping on items $49+ or free curbside pickup
Final Price: $90
Compare to Pure Hockey for $54.99

Buy 1 adidas Freak 20 Football Cleat $44.99
Sign up for Dick’s email for 10% off
Free curbside pickup
Final Price: $40
Compare to Football America for as low as $25.95

 

13. Only buy adult high-end mountain bikes for 50% off at Dick’s.

schwinn bikes at dicks sporting goods

Dick’s takes 50% off mountain bikes on an annual basis, so if you’re considering buying a new two-wheeler, this is a no-brainer. Expect deals like the one we found on this GT Aggressor Pro, which was discounted $335 off the regular price.

Buy 1 GT Men’s Aggressor Pro Mountain Bike (reg. $669.99) $334.99, sale price
Free shipping on orders $49+ or free curbside pickup
Final Price: $334.99
Compare to Trek beginner mountain bikes for $469.99

They’ll also assemble your bike for free, but remember that Dick’s only allows bike returns within 24 hours of assembly.

See all bicycle coupons.

 

14. Skip Hydro Flask bottles, but buy the coolers at Dick’s.

yeti cooler at dicks sporting goods

Multiple times throughout the year Dick’s will take 25% off of any Hydro Flask product, and that’s where we see good returns on items such as lunch boxes or this insulated cooler tote:

Buy 1 Hydro Flask 20L Insulated Cooler Tote (reg. $64.95) $48.71, sale price
Sign up for Dick’s email for 10% off
Free shipping on order $49+ or free curbside pickup
Final Price: $43.84
Compare to REI for $64.95

See all Hydro Flask coupons.

 

 

15. Buy Okuma fishing rods at Dick’s for 55% less than what Bass Pro charges.

 

Dick’s runs its big fishing sale in late April and early May. That’s when we’ve found a slew of fishing rod deals, and none have been better than this discount on Okuma rods:

Buy 1 Okuma Stratus VI Spinning Rod (reg. $79.99), sale price $39.98
Free curbside pickup
Final Price: $39.98
Compare to Bass Pro for $89.99

Thanks for reading. Did we miss any of your favorite items to buy at Dick’s? Let me know in the comments.